The dominant narratives in every aspect of life today have a distinct demarcation – before and after the pandemic. The GME industry is no exception. This is reflected in the Enrolled Students Survey - 2022 Summary Report, which shows a more favorable response to GME across evaluation matrices as the pandemic recedes globally. Eighty-five percent of respondents rated the value of their GME degree between good and outstanding, compared with 82 percent in 2021. Participants’ response to student services is up from 80 percent in 2021 to 85 percent this year; the survey indicated a similar increase respondents’ satisfaction in career services, which grew over the past year from 74 percent to 84 percent. Elsewhere in the survey, 86 percent of the respondents from the GMAC member schools were employed at graduation, compared with 80 percent last year - indicating an improvement in the job market.
Several other findings of the survey point towards GME’s resurgence in 2022.
What’s covered in the survey?
This data-driven narrative helps business schools understand where their curriculum stands on the larger, competitive GME landscape. It also helps them derive marketable elements to offer to prospective students, in support of the overall value of a GME degree. In the crosshairs are participants’ overall GME experience, job search experience, career goals and progression, and importantly, the evolving value perceptions of a GME degree as the world emerges from the COVID-19 disruption.
Key Findings:
Satisfaction with career and student services improved as mobility and travel restrictions eased
This year, 84 percent of participants responded favorably to career services quality, versus 74 percent last year. Responses to student services quality also showed significant improvement, up from 80 percent in 2021 to 85 percent this year. This trend spanned programs and geographies – from full-time MBA to business masters, and from Asia-Pacific to Latin America. The most highly favored category was faculty, which was voted as good to outstanding by 92 percent of the respondents. Next came curriculum (89% favorable), quality of cohort (88%), and admissions (88%). These ratings align closely with the 2021 report’s findings.
Social media dominated job search activity
Up from 27 percent in 2021 to 37 percent in 2022, using social media (including LinkedIn) for job searches surpassed networking with classmates and alumni (28%) and friends and family (35%). Both the professional MBA (24% in 2021 and 31% in 2022) and business masters (23% in 2021 and 40% in 2022) programs reflected this trend. In terms of geographies, most regions except North America aligned with this trend.
More students were employed at graduation
Compared with 80 percent in 2021, 86 percent of graduates were employed at graduation. This again is a persistent trend spread across programs; the highest uptick to 91 percent was reported in the business master’s program. Asia-Pacific and Europe reported the highest employment rate at graduation.
Importantly, over half of the respondents who did an internship or work project received job offers from the same workplaces.
Career change and promotion were the top successful goals of 2022 GME graduates
Fifty-seven percent of graduates who sought career change supported by a GME degree succeeded at it, and 56 percent of those who aspired for promotion succeeded at it. The success rate had a global spread, with a high of 66 percent reported from Latin America/Middle East/Africa, and a low of 54 percent in the Asia-Pacific region.
Higher value perception of GME degree
Eighty-five percent of respondents this year reported the value of a GME degree between good and outstanding, versus 82 percent last year. Students from Asia-Pacific schools reported the highest jump in this value perception, to 86 percent from 75 percent last year.
Conclusion
Graduate business education is recovering from the pandemic blues, and there are green sprouts everywhere. This verdict comes straight from the horses’ mouths – the students and the graduating students. To learn more, read the full report.
